Researchers find ancient stone tool in Oregon's high desert

March 9, 2015 9:22 PM

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"When we had the volcanic ash identified, we were stunned because that would make this stone tool one of the oldest artifacts in North America," excavation leader Dr. Patrick O'Grady, an archaeologist at the University of Oregon, said in a press release. "Given those circumstances and the laws of stratigraphy, this object should be older than the ash."

The tool was recovered from a deposit known as Rimrock Draw Rockshelter, located in southeastern Oregon.